Crafting System

Creating equipment and items using the Item Forge.

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Crafting Requirements

Reticle Cold War features more than 70 player-craftable items. The only way to acquire items is by:

• Crafting the item on your own (covered below)
• Purchasing the item from the marketplace
• Receiving items as rewards via the attractor lottery

Craftable items require some combination of these resources:

Resource	Description	How to Obtain
Forge Points (FP)	Primary crafting currency	Data Shards → Forge Engine conversion
Blueprints	Recipes for specific items	Mission rewards, puzzles, trading, intelligence operations
Memory Fragments	Special currency for certain items	Memory Machine competition
Skill Proficiency	Minimum average XP in relevant skill areas to craft an item	Skill development through gameplay
Other Items	Certain items can be merged together	Craft required items

What Each Item Needs

Item Type	Forge Points	Blueprint	Memory Fragments	Skill Check
Engine Parts	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Puzzle Consumables	Yes	No	No	Yes
Memory Machine Components	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Repair Kits	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Probability Matrix Items	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Attractor Modules	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Market Intelligence Modules	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Skill-Boosting Cosmetics	Yes	Yes (rare+)	No	Yes
Merged Items	Yes	No	Sometimes	Yes

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Using the Item Forge

The Item Forge in the Operative Evolution Center is where all crafting happens.

Direct Crafting

For items you can afford immediately:

1. Select item — Browse available recipes (filtered by owned blueprints)
2. Review requirements — Check FP cost, skill requirements, crafting time
3. Initiate craft — Pay resources upfront
4. Wait for completion — Items enter crafting queue
5. Claim item — Move to inventory when ready

The Vault System

For expensive items, use the Vault to accumulate FP over time:

1. Set a crafting goal — Select the item you want to craft
2. Allocate vault slots — Assign FP generation to this goal
3. Monitor progress — Watch your vault fill toward the target
4. Craft when ready — Once the vault reaches the goal, initiate crafting
5. Liquid FP supplements — If your vault is short, liquid FP covers the difference

The vault prevents you from accidentally spending FP allocated to long-term goals.

Crafting Time

Items take real time to craft based on complexity:

Rarity	Base Time
Common	~2 hours
Uncommon	~8 hours
Rare	~36 hours (1.5 days)
Legendary	~48 hours (2 days)

Modifiers: Crafting time adjusts based on skill requirements, player level, and item category.

Skill Checks During Crafting

Crafting involves a d20 skill check against the item's difficulty:

• Success: Item created as expected
• Failure: A percentage of allocated FP is consumed but no item produced (the remainder is retuned to the player)
• Natural 1: Automatic failure (5% chance)
• Natural 20: Automatic success (5% chance)

Higher skills dramatically improve success rates. See Skills & Skill Checks for the full system.

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Blueprints

Most items require blueprints before crafting.

Obtaining Blueprints

Source	Blueprint Types
Mission Rewards	Matched to your skill progression
Puzzle Completion	Based on puzzle difficulty
Intelligence Operations	Exclusive blueprints (Market Scanners)
Trading	Any tradeable blueprint from other players
Attractor Rewards	Lottery-based blueprint drops

Blueprint Distribution Logic

The system intelligently distributes blueprints based on:

Factor	Weight
Current skill distribution	Primary (matches your strengths)
Near-term progression	Secondary (slightly ahead of your level)
Aspirational items	Some (motivates advancement)
Trading stock	~5% (off-spec items for market activity)

Blueprint Rarity Matches Item Rarity

A Legendary blueprint unlocks a Legendary item. Blueprint rarity determines how difficult it is to obtain.

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Merged Items

Merged items are high-level gear created by combining two existing items. They require no blueprint—only the input items and sufficient skill.

How Merging Works

1. Acquire both input items — Must be in your inventory
2. Open the crafting interface — Found in Item Forge
3. Select the item requiring two or more parts — System will automatically detect whether you meet the item requirements
4. Confirm craft — Both input items are consumed
5. Receive merged item — New item appears after crafting time

Merged Item Benefits

• Cross-career synergies: Combines skill bonuses from different career paths
• Higher stats: Merged items often exceed either input item alone
• No blueprint barrier: Accessible once you have the inputs and skills

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Item Categories

Forge Engine Parts

Components that improve your Forge Engine efficiency. Four quality tiers:

Tier	Rarity	Efficiency Boost	Blueprint Required
Basic	Common	+10%	Yes
Quality	Uncommon	+15%	Yes
Superior	Rare	+20%	Yes
Masterwork	Legendary	+30%	Yes

Memory Machine Components

Cross-faction competitive items for the Memory Machine competition. Seven component types across five grades (I-V):

• Machine Conduits, Machine Fuel, Machine Cores
• Contest Algorithms, Contest Negotiation, Faction Interaction
• Memory Sink (mission unlock only)

Consumables

Single-use or limited-charge items:

Category	Examples	Blueprint
Puzzle Aids	Insight Heightener (extra attempts), Quantum Skeleton Key (bypass)	No
Training Enhancers	Skill-specific XP boosters	Yes
Intelligence Support	Briefing amplifiers, scenario assistance	Yes
Crafting Optimization	Queue management, success rate boosters	Yes

Permanent Devices

Items that persist indefinitely but require Memory Fragments to operate:

Device	Function	Fragment Cost
Attractor Modules	Lottery system for blueprint/cosmetic rewards	Per sync cycle feed
Market Scanners	Economic analytics and forecasting	Per scan operation

Skill-Boosting Cosmetics

Wearable items providing skill XP bonuses. Degrade with use and require Repair Kits.

Rarity	Durability	XP Boost	Blueprint
Common	50	4-5%	No
Uncommon	75	8-10%	No
Rare	100	12-15%	Yes
Legendary	150	18-20%	Yes

Repair Kits

Restore durability to cosmetic items:

Kit Tier	Durability Restored	Blueprint
Basic	25	Yes
Standard	50	Yes
Premium	100	Yes

Probability Matrix Items

Memory Fragment-gated skill enhancers that improve skill check odds. Require fragments to craft and recharge.

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Planning Your Crafting: The Roadmap

The Crafting Roadmap is an in-game tool that organizes all craftable items by progression tier, helping you understand what's accessible now and what you're working toward.

Two Planning Views

View	Organizes By	Purpose
Item Crafting	Skill requirements	Shows what you can craft based on skill proficiency
Item Use	Operative level	Shows when you can equip or consume items

Key Features

• "You Are Here" indicator — Highlights your current tier in each view
• Career filtering — Focus on items aligned with your career path
• Goal tracking — Set up to 15 crafting targets with progress monitoring
• Favorites — Mark up to 20 items for quick reference
• Progress stats — Track your overall unlock percentage

Using the Roadmap

1. Open the Crafting Roadmap from the Item Forge
2. Switch between Crafting and Use views to plan from both perspectives
3. Filter by your career to see relevant items
4. Set goals for items you want to target
5. Use the roadmap to guide your skill development and vault allocation

Full Roadmap Guide →

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Related Systems

• Crafting Roadmap — Visual planning tool for crafting progression
• The Homeostatic Economy — Forge Point generation and economy balancing
• Skills & Skill Checks — Skill requirements and crafting success rates
• Memory Machine — Earning Memory Fragments
• The Marketplace — Trading crafted items